Lahontan Valley/Forty Mile Desert

Past Wadsworth, the freeway cuts across the
Lahontan Valley. The Lahontan Valley is a barren desert, sometimes called the
Forty Mile Desert, from the era of the
California Trail. The name comes from the
California Gold Rush where the emigrants who came into the Lahontan Valley via the
Humboldt River. The travelers would have then to endure 40 miles (64 km) without usable water while crossing the valley, regardless of which of the two routes across the valley the travelers followed.[5] I-80 closely approximates the path of the emigrants between the Humboldt and Truckee Rivers. Between eastern Fernley and Winnemucca, the speed limit was raised from 75 to 80 mph (129 kph) in 2017.[6]

I-80 in Downtown Reno

A marker stands at a
rest area on the eastern edge of the valley, near the junction of I-80 and
US 95, that honors travelers who suffered crossing the valley, thousands of whom abandoned possessions, animals and even loved ones in the desert. Per the marker, this portion was the most dreaded portion of the California Trail.[4][5][7]

The freeway is within visual distance of the river for most of this run. However, there are portions where the freeway bypasses bends by cutting across or tunneling under mountains along the canyon walls. Between Winnemucca and Battle Mountain, the freeway bypasses bends via side canyons and
Golconda Summit, 5,159 feet (1,572 m).[4] The highway also bypasses
Palisade Canyon (between
Beowawe and Carlin) via
Emigrant Pass 6,114 feet (1,864 m).[4] Just east of Carlin, I-80 passes through the
Carlin Tunnel to bypass curves of the river in the
Carlin Canyon (between the Carlin Tunnel and Elko).[10]

Eastern Nevada

After Wells, I-80 departs the Humboldt River, First Transcontinental Railroad and the California Trail.[4] From this point east, the freeway follows the routes of the
Hastings Cutoff, Feather River Route, former US 40 and State Route 1. The freeway cuts across two mountain ranges before arriving at the
Great Salt Lake Desert. The first is the
Pequop Mountains via
Pequop Summit, elevation 6,967 feet (2,124 m)—the highest point on Interstate 80 in Nevada—and the second is the
Toano Range via Silver Zone Pass at 5,955 feet (1,815 m). After crossing these mountains the freeway arrives at
West Wendover where the freeway enters both
Utah and the Great Salt Lake Desert at the
Bonneville Salt Flats.[4]

History

California Trail

State Route 1 - The first designation for what is now I-80 across Nevada, from approx. 1929–1939

The general route of Interstate 80 was first used by California-bound travelers and was called the
California Trail. From the Utah State line west to the Humboldt River, I-80 follows a modified routing of a lesser used branch of the trail called
Hastings Cutoff. The cutoff rejoins the main route of the trail in the Humboldt River canyon. Through this portion of Nevada, the main route of the California Trail ran north of modern
State Route 233.

Transcontinental railroads

The route of modern I-80 was also previously used for the construction of two transcontinental railroads. The
First Transcontinental Railroad, completed in 1869, closely followed the main line of the California Trail and I-80 west of Wells. The
Feather River Route was constructed in 1909 and generally follows the Hastings Cutoff through Eastern Nevada. It also runs parallel to I-80 in Nevada east of Winnemucca.[4]

Highways

The first paved road across this portion of Nevada was the
Victory Highway, designated in Nevada as State Route 1. With the formation of the
U.S. Highway system, this route was numbered
U.S. Route 40. From the formation of the
Interstate Highway System, the highway was gradually upgraded to
Interstate Highway standards and signed as Interstate 80. In 1974, officials in Utah initiated meetings with officials in Nevada and California to truncate the route of
U.S. Route 91. By that time, US 91 was mostly redundant with
Interstate 15. Nevada officials agreed and further suggested that both US 91 and US 40 be truncated. Nevada officials recommended the changes occur in 1975, when the last Nevada piece of I-15 was expected to be completed.[11] The 1976 edition of the Official Highway map for Nevada was the first not showing the US 40 designation.[12] Even though the US Highway designation was removed, the freeway was not yet completed.[12] The last piece of I-80 in Nevada to be finished was the
Lovelock bypass which started construction in 1981.[13] The 1982 Official Nevada Highway Map was the first to note I-80 as a contiguous freeway across the state. All of the
business loops for I-80 in Nevada use the historical route of US 40.